 Les Moonves |
If CBS CEO Les Moonves were to exit the network in the wake of his battles with National Amusements and Shari Redstone, he would likely do so with a major payout. A report on The Wrap places the value of the golden parachute that Moonves would receive at somewhere between $181 million and $315 million, which would include an additional sum for the company’s stock performance. The report says the numbers are based on company filings with the Securities and Exchange Commission. But none of that money is guaranteed. While Moonves would probably get a $184 million parachute if CBS fired him without cause, if the dismissal were for “good reason,” several million dollars would be trimmed from that figure. And if there’s “cause” for Moonves’ firing, he could potentially receive no money at all, not even the stock-based payout.
 Alex Jones |
Conspiracy theorist, talk show host and online disaster-preparedness supply salesman Alex Jones is expanding his InfoWars digital media platform into a 24-hour-a-day news operation. Jones told viewers of his show that InfoWars is planning to bring on about 15 new employees—“our biggest recruitment and hiring operation ever.” InfoWars is looking to fill positions including video editors, live show producers and investigative reporters. Jones’ YouTube channel currently has 2.35 million subscribers. An enthusiastic supporter of President Trump, Jones is perhaps most famous for his claims that the 2012 Sandy Hook school shootings were a hoax perpetrated by the mainstream media. “This is a very, very exciting chance for InfoWars to up our game in the face of the globalists,” he said.
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Interview, the magazine founded by Andy Warhol in 1969, has shut down. According to multiple sources, the magazine has filed for a Chapter 7 bankruptcy and is currently in the process of liquidating its assets. The publication, which has been owned by billionaire art collector Peter Brant since 1989, has been through a series of financial difficulties over the past few years. Interview employees were locked out of its Soho offices in February for not paying rent, and the company subsequently moved. In April, the magazine’s editorial director Fabien Baron resigned. Earlier this month, Baron filed suit against the company, alleging that he and his wife, stylist Ludivine Poiblanc, are owed over $600,000 in unpaid invoices.
USA TODAY brings on Jamie Stockwell as VP of news, effective March 30. Stockwell was most recently deputy managing editor of news for the Washington Post... YouTube expands its likeness detection capabilities to a pilot group of government officials, journalists and political candidates... The AP Fund for Journalism adds 50 news organizations to its local news program, bringing the total number of participating newsrooms to 100. 
Versant Media Group, the NBCUniversal cable TV spin-off, today reported its first financial results as 2025 revenues dipped 5.3 percent to $6.7B and standalone EBITDA dropped 9.1 percent to $2.2B.
Trump Media & Technology Group is discussing a spin-off of the Truth Social platform following the expected closing of its $6B merger deal with TAE Technologies... Condé Nast sells off Them, the digital LGBTQ-focused platform it launched in 2017, to Equalpride, publisher of Out, The Advocate, Out Traveler, Health PLUS Wellness and Pride.com... CBS News has parted ways with longevity influencer Peter Attia, one of the 19 contributors that editor-in-chief Bari Weiss brought on as part of her plan to present a wider variety of voices on the platform. 
Symbolic.ai forms a partnership with News Corp to begin using the company’s AI-native publisher platform in the newsrooms of News Corp publications to augment research, writing and publishing... Mediaite launches a newsletter that promises to give readers a summary of—media newsletters... The Fund for American Studies launches the Journalism Excellence Fellowship, a program that will provide promising young journalists the opportunity to work alongside top writers, reporters, and media professionals.
The Pittsburgh Post-Gazette, which has roots going back to 1786, is going out of business, the paper’s owners, Block Communications, announced on Jan. 7... GQ editor Will Welch is stepping down to take on a new Paris-based role with the musician Pharrell, who is also men’s creative director at Louis Vuitton... Semafor says it has raised $30 million on a $330 million valuation, following its first profitable year. 
